Toyota Aygo

The Toyota Aygo shares its parts with the Citroen C1 and the Peugeot 108 in much the same way that the Volkswagen Up!, the Skoda Citigo and the SEAT Mii are pretty much the exact same cars. These are city cars and as a segment its popularity is growing rapidly. All of these cars are becoming more refined, more practical and better looking to boot. The Toyota Aygo is being paraded as one of Toyota’s fun and stylish cars and to many people that’s exactly what it is. It’s a handy little machine for urbanites who need wheels to get in and out of towns, and this little machine will bring you further afield too. It’s small, cheap to run and reliable.

Performance

Toyota Ireland has kept things extremely simple by making just one engine available in this vehicle and for some people this is a little disappointing because more powerful choices are available here with the Peugeot 108 for example. The one engine that is available is a 1.0 litre VVT-i petrol offering that gives a maximum power of 69 bhp. While this car feels nippy in cities, getting it on the motorway is a different story and when you put your foot down it will take you 14.2 seconds to get from 0-100 km/h. However, it is our experience that purchasers of vehicles like this are not too concerned about issues of this kind. Hopefully Toyota will consider bringing in the more powerful 1.2 litre engine that you can find in the 108. It’s that bit more fun.

Ride & Handling

This is where many city cars really excel and in the Aygo it is no different. This car corners brilliantly and it deals with bumps in a nice fashion. Another bonus is that the steering is light but precise. The car is easy to turn and very handy to park too.

Refinement

Cars like these are never overly refined and the Aygo can be a noisy little machine. The petrol engine can be heard from the cabin but it is a satisfying noise of a car working its way up to speed. Wind and road noise on the motorway is loud though because the Aygo is not a wonderfully padded car – once again this is a fact of life for most city cars.

Quality & Reliability

There are a lot of personalisation options with the Toyota Aygo and we have to admit that it is a stylish machine. The outside colour is brought into the car on the dash board. While there is a fair amount of plastics in here, we would not be happy to call it cheap. Everything is nicely presented and it is probably one of the most exciting dashes in the Toyota range. The infotainment system looks great and is easy to use. This is the x-touch multimedia system and it operates through a seven inch touchscreen.

Safety & Security

In 2014 the Aygo received four stars in the Euro NCAP. The vehicle scored 80% for both child and adult occupancy. It scored 62% for pedestrian safety. This vehicle comes with an anti-lock braking system as well as vehicle stability control. For those of you who don’t like hill stars you will note that it also has Hill-Start Assist Control.

Space & Practicality

The Aygo feels surprisingly spacious. One of the reasons for this could be because Toyota did not try and pass this off as a five-seat vehicle. It is set up with four seats and leg room to the rear is surprisingly good. The front cabin is spacious too. The boot is tiny but there is enough room for the weekly shopping.